Services at around 80,000 bank branches in the country are hit today as employees of public sector banks are on a one-day strike to protest proposed merger of SBI’s associate banks with SBI and banking reforms announced by the government.

However, private sector banks are working as usual. Most of the public sector banks including SBI had earlier informed their customers of inconvenience if strike materialises. The United Forum of Banks Unions (UFBU), an umbrella organisation of nine bank employees and officers unions representing 8 lakh staffers, has gone ahead with the strike.

Bank Unions are protesting against FDI in the banking sector, privatisation of public sector banks, consolidation and merger of banks. According to All India Bank Employees Association General Secretary C H Venkatachalam, the conciliation meeting with the Chief Labour Commissioner on 26th of this month did not yield any positive results.